Estrogen is available as natural and synthetic supplements. There are different administrative methods which include

• Oral administration
• Through injections
• As implants under the skin
• Through vagina

Synthetic Supplements

These include

• Stilboesterol
• Hexoesterol
• Dienosterol
• Chlortrianisene
• Ethynyl Estradiol
• Mestranol

The synthetic varieties are usually associated with the following side effects.

• Nausea and vomiting
• Painful breasts
• Water retention resulting in bloating and weight gain
• Irregular bleeding ( if the treatment is a prolonged one)
• Endometrial cancer
• Breast cancer
• Clotting of blood in the brain and legs

Natural Estrogen Supplements

This comprises of

• Estriol
• 17 Estradiol
• Conjugated estrogens.

These natural supplements are

• Less potent
• Produce fewer side effects.
• Don’t produce diabetes mellitus
• Don’t increase the blood clotting factors

Benefits of Estrogen therapy

Though estrogen replacement therapy is associated with a lot of side effects, it remains the mainstay in the hormonal replacement therapy especially in post menopausal women. The side effects can be minimized by using the natural estrogen supplements or by combining the estrogen supplements with progesterone supplements. Moreover exercise decreases the blood estrogen levels. So exercise and estrogen replacement when combined can produce good results by minimizing the side effects. The benefits include

• Relief of menopausal symptoms
• Oral contraception
• Protection of the lower genital tract against infection and drying
• For irregular menstrual cycles
• For genetic disorders involving the sex chromosomes like Turner’s Syndrome
• Prevention of osteoporosis
• Protection of heart
• Maintenance of healthy skin

Though estrogen replacement therapy is associated with a few side effects, it still remains the mainstay in the treatment of menopausal women. The side effects can be minimized by natural estrogen replacement therapy